Residential Property Sales Highest Since 2008

Residential property sales in 2017 showed the best result since 2008 with a total of 532,367 purchases throughout the year. This represents a 16.3% increase when compared to the previous year. Compared to the peak in 2006 (when sales reached 955,186 houses), we are still 44% below the maximum. However, compared to the 2013 minimums (with only 300,568 sales), the market has recovered 77%, according to data from notaries.

The results by province have been positive, except in Lugo (-1.6%) and Ceuta (-2.4%). The greatest increases were recorded in Cuenca (34.2%), Toledo (32.2%), and Albacete (30.5%), which doubled the national average.

Of the large provinces (by population), only Valencia and Madrid are above the national average, with 21.2% and 19.6%, respectively. Malaga (15.3%), Barcelona (14%), Seville (13.6%) and Alicante (12.9%) also showed increases but below the Spanish average.

New Property

Looking at transactions by type of housing, there were only 50,398 new property sales. Despite sales of new property barely exceeding fifty thousand, this figure represents the first increase in new home transactions since 2007, with an average increase of 7%.

But, the sale of new property has been very disparate across Spain. While provinces such as Cuenca or Albacete have seen sales figures double for new property, others such as Vizcaya (-35.6%), Soria (-32.5%) or Lleida (-27.1%) finished 2017 with negative results.

The sale of new housing in the most populated provinces grew above the average in Barcelona (30.5%), Alicante (17.7%), Madrid and Malaga (both with 16.6%). However, new housing sales fell in Valencia (-15.2%) and Seville (-21.6%).

Used Property

Used property accounted for more than 90% of total transactions in 2017, with 481,989 used property sales. The number of transactions increased by 17.4% year-on-year, to return to a level not seen since 2006. Toledo, Cantabria and Álava offered the most significant annual growths, with 33%, 30% and 29.7% year-on-year, respectively. Lugo (7.1%), León (7.8%) and Palencia (8.4%) grew the least last year.

Once again looking at the most populated provinces, Valencia (24.4%), Madrid (20%), Seville (18%), Barcelona (12.8%), and Alicante (12.3%) all showed growth but at different rates.

January continues upward trend

The beginning of 2018 maintains the upward trend with which the last year closed. In January, there was an increase of 11.2% with 38,953 transactions. The sale of flats increased by 9.2%, while single-family home sales increased by 19.6%.

Regarding prices, an average square meter in Spain in January was 1,363 euros, a fall of 0.4% year-on-year. “This reduction in the price per square meter of housing was due to the fall in the price per square meter in single-family homes (-1.7%), despite an increase in the cost of flats (1.2%),” said a spokesperson for the General Council of Notaries.

While the number of new mortgages for the purchase of a home increased by 14%, with average capital of 130,182 euros, the figure represents a decrease of 4.2% year-on-year.